Theraplex Z News

MONDAY, June 26, 2017 – When you purchase a new eye shadow or shampoo, you expect those products will be safe and that they won't cause skin breakouts – or worse. But new research found that's not always the case. And, because cosmetics are woefully underregulated in the United States, and there's no solid system in place to catch when personal care products are harmful, it's possible you'll never hear about a problem with a product, the study suggested. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration complaints database contains only 5,144 adverse events between 2004 and 2016 reported in connection with cosmetics, noted the study's senior author Dr. Steve Xu. He's a dermatologist with Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. "Here is a $400 billion industry with millions of products and multiple controversies, but we only had about 5,000 adverse events over the course of ... Read more

THURSDAY, Dec. 3, 2015 – Do your winter travel plans include Hawaii? You may want to pack bug repellent, experts say. That's because the Big Island of Hawaii is facing an outbreak of dengue fever – a mosquito-borne virus that can cause terrible headache and crushing pain in the muscles and joints. State health officials have confirmed 117 cases of dengue fever on the Big Island since mid-September, including 103 local residents and 14 visitors to the island. One other case has been reported on the island of Oahu, but health officials say it was not locally transmitted and is not tied to the new outbreak. The jump in cases has prompted top experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to visit the island this week to try and help, CNN reported Wednesday. "I don't think travelers should be overly worried, but they should take care to avoid mosquitoes as much as ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 25, 2015 – Patients using prescription creams, gels, sprays and pills for skin conditions may shell out substantially more at the pharmacy than they did just six years ago, a new study suggests. Between 2009 and 2015, retail prices of brand-name dermatologic drugs rose 401 percent, on average, study authors reported Nov. 25 in JAMA Dermatology. Even generics have succumbed to price inflation, up 279 percent between 2011 and 2014, based on the drugs surveyed. Price increases for skin treatments far outpaced the general inflation rate of 11 percent during the six-year study period, the researchers said. "Cancer drugs were the worst in terms of the numbers" – up 1,240 percent or nearly $11,000 over the six-year study period – primarily because of two medicines, said Dr. Steven Rosenberg, voluntary professor of dermatology at the University of Miami Miller School of ... Read more